First pitch is 1:10 PM CT at American Family Field, and on paper this is the kind of matinee the Giants probably want no part of. They are 24-38, they got punched around 16-2 and 8-3 to open the series, and they are sending Adrian Houser (2-5, 5.59) back to the mound on short notice against the team that already shellacked Landen Roupp for 8 runs in 4 innings on Monday. Milwaukee counters with Coleman Crow, a 0-0, 3.14 spot starter who has been shuttling between Nashville and the big club all year.
The wrinkle here is that San Francisco actually has momentum, weird as that sounds for a team 14 games under .500. They no-hit the Brewers into the seventh on Wednesday before Brice Turang broke it up, and they walked out of Milwaukee with a 1-0 win to avoid the sweep. Crow is the soft underbelly of this Brewers rotation — he went 4 innings, 2 ER, 1 K against Houston last time out and got pulled at 61 pitches — so if the Giants are ever going to hang a crooked number on this trip, this is the start to do it against.
Houser is the bigger problem. The 5.59 ERA is what it is, and his last outing in Colorado was a 3.2-inning, 8-hit, 4-ER mess that the Rockies turned into a loss. He's also walking into a Brewers lineup that just dropped 24 runs on the Giants in two games. Milwaukee opened as a -128 favorite with the total sitting at 8.5, which feels about right given the pitching gap — Pinnacle has the Brewers' fair win probability at 55%.
- Day-To-DayLanden Roupp SP — Roupp (5-6) took the loss Monday against the Brewers, allowing eight runs on eight hits and five walks in four innings. He struck out four.
- 10-Day-ILHeliot Ramos LF — Ramos (quadriceps) will begin a hitting progression at the Giants' spring training complex in Arizona on Monday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
- 10-Day-ILHarrison Bader CF — Bader isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against Colorado, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
- 15-Day-ILMatt Gage RP — The Giants placed Gage on the 15-day injured list with knee inflammation Wednesday, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- 15-Day-ILTyler Mahle SP — The Giants placed Mahle on the 15-day injured list Friday, retroactive to Wednesday, due to a left hamstring strain, Justice delos Santos of The San Jose Mercury News reports.
- 60-Day-ILJoel Peguero RP — The Giants placed Peguero on the 60-day injured list Monday due to a left hamstring strain, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
- 60-Day-ILJared Oliva CF — Oliva (wrist) started at designated hitter and went 2-for-2 with two stolen bases, a double, an RBI and a run scored in Triple-A Sacramento's 6-4 loss to Reno on Saturday.
- 60-Day-ILReiver Sanmartin RP — Sanmartin (hip) tossed a scoreless inning in Triple-A Sacramento's 11-6 win over Sugar Land on Tuesday.
- Day-To-DayGerson Garabito RP — Garabito will be out for four months after undergoing surgery to address a broken bone in his foot, Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.
- 10-Day-ILBrandon Lockridge LF — Lockridge (knee) will attempt to run at 85-to-90 percent intensity Monday, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILLogan Henderson SP — Henderson received an injection in his back Tuesday, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILRob Zastryzny RP — The Brewers reinstated Zastrzyny (shoulder/ribs) from the 60-day injured list Sunday.
- 15-Day-ILQuinn Priester SP — Priester's (shoulder) rehab assignment has been transferred from Triple-A Nashville to the Brewers' Arizona Complex League team, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILBrandon Woodruff SP — Woodruff (shoulder) will throw a three-up live batting practice session Wednesday, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILJared Koenig RP — Koenig (elbow) said his live bullpen session went well Tuesday and he expects to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Nashville on Friday, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILAngel Zerpa RP — The Brewers transferred Zerpa (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Sunday.
The injury sheet doesn't help San Francisco's cause. Tyler Mahle and Landen Roupp are both shelved or compromised in the rotation, Matt Gage just hit the 15-day IL with a knee, and the outfield is missing Heliot Ramos and Harrison Bader. Milwaukee is dealing with its own rotation hits — Brandon Woodruff is still building back up via live BP, Logan Henderson got an injection in his back this week, Quinn Priester's rehab moved to the complex league — which is exactly why Crow is starting a getaway-day game in the first place.
Bet on the Brewers and you're paying full freight for the better team at home with the better starter. Bet on the Giants and you're hoping the bullpen game on Milwaukee's side breaks open early and the team that just no-hit you for 6.2 innings actually shows up two days in a row. Take the over 8.5 if you trust either offense to find Houser; otherwise this is a pass-or-puck-around-the-Giants-moneyline-at-+118 kind of spot.